Indiantelevision.com Team

(2 April 2008 6:30 pm)

MUMBAI: Madison Communications' chairman and MD Sam Balsara has acquired 51 percent stake in Mediacom India Private Limited to win an account with P&G India.

Madison together with MediaCom will be handling the media buying and planning for P&G.

While Mediacom will do the media planning for P&G, Madison will handle the media buying business for the same.

Sam Balsara, who now owns a majority interest in MediaCom India Private Limited, will be heading the company as its chairman.

While Divya Gururaj will continue in her role as MD of MediaCom, the company will report to Balsara. GroupM will not be involved in managing the company anymore. Madison Mediacom combine will become effective from 1 July.

In November '07 when P&G India decided to undertake a review of its media business and hence its media agencies, four agencies namely Balsara's Madison, GroupM's Mediacom, Carat (a part of the Aegis Group) and Starcom Worldwide took the lead to contest for the company's media segment.

GroupM's Mediacom, which currently handles P&G's media planning along with Starcom Worldwide, did not want to lose its client anyhow. However speculations were around since GroupM's MindShare handles the Hindustan Unilever business, P&G's arch rival.

Thus to retain its client, MediaCom decided to join hands with Madison which currently handles the media buying for the business.

During the review procedures which took place on 3 March and 4 March this year, Madison and Mediacom made a presentation together for fighting the remaining two agencies. While Mediacom contested for the company's media planning business, Madison pitched in for the media buying business of P&G India.

And finally after a long fight, on Wednesday P&G India handed over its media planning and buying business to the Madison-MediaCom group.